THE 18 UNSOLVED CHARACTERS

10/3/2018

In a previous article it was considered that the Zodiac Killer's identity was born on August 3rd 1969, but on this occasion I shall take an altogether different approach, and consider the possibility that the Bay Area murderer had already decided upon the pseudonym Zodiac when he mailed the trinity of letters and ciphers to the Vallejo Times-Herald, San Francisco Examiner and San Francisco Chronicle on July 31st 1969.
The San Francisco Chronicle letter (part 3) reads as follows "Here is part of a cipher the other 2 parts of this cipher are being mailed to the editors of the Vallejo Times and SF Examiner. I want you to print this cipher on the front page of your paper. In this cipher is my idenity. If you do not print this cipher by the afternoon of Fry.1st of Aug 69, I will go on a kill ram-Page Fry. night. I will cruse around all weekend killing lone people in the night then move on to kill again, until I end up with a dozen people over the weekend." The final 18 characters of the San Francisco Chronicle code remain undeciphered. However, the clues to breaking the remaining portion of the cipher may reside within the letters themselves.
The 408 cipher message read "I like killing people because it is so much fun it is more fun than killing wild game in the forrest because man is the most dangerous animal of all to kill something gives me the most thrilling experence it is even better than getting your rocks off with a girl the best part of it is that when I die I will be reborn in paradice and all the (people) I have killed will become my slaves I will not give you my name because you will try to slow down or stop my collecting of slaves for my afterlife. ebeorietemethhpiti." The unbroken characters are shown in red.

The San Francisco Chronicle cipher

The murderer chose his words carefully, stating "in this cipher is my identity" rather than his name. This became evident when the vast majority of the 408 cipher was cracked a matter of days later, and the killer revealed "I will not give you my name because you will try to slow down or stop my collecting of slaves for my afterlife." This still left open the possibility that his identity or pseudonym was contained in the 408 cipher. The San Francisco Chronicle letter was the only one of the trinity that contained "in this cipher is my identity," so logically, one could conclude that the 18 undeciphered characters at its foot, was the location of the murderer's identity.
If the killer had already decided upon his pseudonym when he wrote the three July 31st 1969 letters, then his decision to begin all three letters with "This is the murderer" and "I am the killer" (twice) was deliberately engineered to withhold the pseudonym Zodiac from the letters. The reason being - it was concealed in the final 18 characters of the 408 cipher.
It could be argued, that if he was to reveal his identity or pseudonym in the 408 cipher, then logically he would sign off the cryptogram with it. This was also apparent in the 340 cipher, with the near-Zodiac tantalizingly placed on the final line.
If the Zodiac Killer had revealed his pseudonym straight away, then one of the letters would have opened with "This is the Zodiac" rather than "This is the murderer" (exactly like the August 4th 1969 letter). The other two letters would have opened with "I am the Zodiac Killer" rather than "I am the killer". But the murderer and author of the letters wanted to hide his pseudonym for now, and conceal it in the final 18 characters of the 408 cipher.

We can now complete the 408 message:
"I like killing people because it is so much fun it is more fun than killing wild game in the forrest because man is the most dangerous animal of all to kill something gives me the most thrilling experence it is even better than getting your rocks off with a girl the best part of it is that when I die I will be reborn in paradice and all the (people) I have killed will become my slaves. I will not give you my name because you will try to slow down or stop my collecting of slaves for my afterlife. I am the Zodiac Killer."
This is an attempt at reasoning a solution from within the letters themselves, and not a claim of a definitive solution

THE 18 UNSOLVED CHARACTERS [PT2]
THE 18 UNSOLVED CHARACTERS [PT3]

33 Comments

Judith

10/3/2018 07:32:59 am

Very good

Richard

10/3/2018 07:35:07 am

Thanks Judith.

Judith

10/3/2018 11:05:16 am

Or PETERSTEPHENPLANTE. 18 characters?

Lemonboy

10/4/2018 05:56:14 am

Lol

Rubislaw 32 link

10/3/2018 01:49:38 pm

I am really posting,Richard,fishing for a clue.

But,while I am here....I would just like to make the point,if anyone is interested.....that,given as I must be the only person,in the public domain,that bothered to go through the ''concerned citizen's'' cipher keys.....found that he had made just one unforced error.That being the word ''tha'',instead of ''that''.

Well,if the ''concerned citizen'' [Zodiac] had had real pride in his work,on the ''408'',he would have torn it up,and started again.

Instead,he pressed on,knowing that he would be allocating 18 character spaces,for an anagram,instead of precisely a final line of 17.

The alternative scenario is,that he intended the ''408'',to actually be a ''391'',with precisely 23 lines,instead of the 24.

Either way,what this means is,that he rather made up that ''anagram'' to finish his cipher,''on the hoof''....an ''improvisation'' if you will.So,it is likely,as you and Judith have put forward,that the solution to that ''anagram'' bore little relationship to the main composition solution.

My request of a clue ?

Just homing in on a solution to ''S1'',the first of the Scorpion ciphers,and already am confident that it is the work of the Zodiac.

Well,with the cipher text,one can see two obvious inferences to ''Kaczynski'',anyway.

What I require is,the name of a coffee house or stall,in New York,probably of ten letters,in length.

Probably resembling this :

'' _EL____O_S ''

A ''long shot''....but any takers ?

Thanks.

Richard

10/3/2018 02:03:40 pm

That is a tough ask Rubislaw. Its not 'something' & Sons.
Do you require a coffee house from 50 years ago, or today. I presume from the 60s.

Rubislaw 32 link

10/3/2018 02:18:17 pm

Thanks for taking an interest,Richard.

Scorpion constructed 5 ciphers,with the first,which I refer to,coming in 1991.

There are two,in the public domain....his first [S1].....and his last [S5].

So,early to mid 90's,as far as the FBI are willing to admit to.

Scorpion suggested that he had moved to New Jersey.So,New York,just across the water,is the obvious candidate for place names.

The ''Kaczynski'' inferences are just part of the Zodiac's ''blame game''....with ''evidence'' that he had already palmed off blame,on Arthur Leigh Allen and William Joseph Grant,in the past.

Naturally ''1991'' appears tantalising,since it is one year on,from the Eureka Xmas card,and 1990 Celebrity Cipher.

Richard

10/3/2018 02:29:50 pm

I hope somebody else can help you. I will have a search, but that is going to be a difficult task. If it's out of business, then an internet search would likely be futile. You really need a researcher who grew up in the relevant area, rather than a keyboard warrior from the West Midlands, 5,000 miles adrift.

Richard

10/3/2018 02:46:18 pm

There were several errors in the 408, including the total dropping of the word "people" that should have been placed in the cipher.
"I will be reborn in paradise and all the (people) I have killed will become my slaves". If we actually added this into the equation, that is an extra 5 characters. How much of this was deliberate or accidental is the million dollar question. If Zodiac intended to leave, say 18 characters for a message such as the one above, then he still should have been able to manage a legible message with the rest of the cipher. The cipher is arranged with care, but the message itself appears rushed. If you look at the "people" in the Chronicle letter, it comes after the break from the Examiner letter. https://www.zodiacciphers.com/chronicle-letter.html
Almost like he was writing the message on the fly, and it threw him off. I am going to concentrate on this for a while. Ray Grant wrote a good piece on Reddit about the 408.
https://www.reddit.com/r/ZodiacKiller/comments/9ixvsn/why_cryptography_wont_solve_the_zodiac_case_either/?sort=new

Richard

10/3/2018 02:51:26 pm

Sorry, 6 characters.

Rubislaw 32 link

10/3/2018 02:57:25 pm

Yes,''Know what you mean''.

Just to state,the perhaps obvious,it appears that Zodiac never settled very long,after circa 1972.Or,that he pretended to appear to be always on the move.

I believe that I have solved the ''S1'',apart from ''that'' coffee house,or stall,in New York.There is some quite good info going,at present....but an awful lot of coffee houses in New York [!].

Here's the exciting bit....if such a thing.It looks as if the ''S1'' solution,is,in effect,a caption text to a photograph that ''Scorpion'' sent to the FBI,which accompanied the cipher.

The photograph would have been of that ''coffee house'',virtually empty of customers....with ''Scorpion'' joking that there would be ''slim pickings'',if he was intending to be ''collecting people'',for his favoured place....''Paradice'' comes to mind [?].

Anyhows,once I find the coffee house,I'll put it to the FBI,that I ''know'' that ''Scorpion'' sent them a photograph,as well.

Rubislaw 32 link

10/3/2018 04:16:23 pm

Yes Richard,to return to the thrust of your point on the ''spelling'' matter,with regard to the ''408'' text composition.

And referring to the work I carried out on the ''concerned citizen'' :

''ANAMAL'' was corrected to ''ANIMAL'' [...no change in quantity..]

''DANGEROUE'' was corrected to ''DANGEROUS'' [...no change...]

''SLOI'' was corrected to ''SLOW'' [....no change...].

The only ''dodgy'' one,which I believe ''was'' intended was :

'' EXPERENCE ''....which is the same,for both Hardens and ''concerned citizen'' solutions.Now,we know that the Zodiac employed words such as ''Cerous'' instead of ''serious''.....so I believe ''Experence'' [....instead of the correct ''Experience'' was intended....and ''not'' an unforced error....]

Apart from the ''Paradise/Paradice'' dilemma.....it should just leave us with ''THA'' from ''concerned citizen''....and ''THE'' from the Hardens.

Naturally,and as referred to before,I am inclined to believe that ''concerned citizen'' [Zodiac] intended ''THAT'',instead of ''THA''.

But indeed,we can't be absolutely certain....though as a general overview,it is ''close to certainty'' that ''concerned citizen'' was the Zodiac....rushing through an improved version of the Harden's ''408'' solution,in light of his humiliation,of its publication,just two days prior.

In the words of Jimi Hendrix :

'' Have you ever been EXPERENCED ? ''

Richard

10/3/2018 04:24:09 pm

Here is the message. Actually, you can ignore "people", the message should have read "those" not "the". He makes the error at the end of a line at the break between the Examiner and Chronicle letter. He misses an I in "experience" and adds an R in "forrest", so these cancel each other out. If he had correctly written "those", there would have been 16 unsolved characters.

Quote."found that he had made just one unforced error.That being the word ''tha'',instead of ''that'."
In the Annotated solution to the 408 cipher, based on the Harden worksheets here http://zodiackillerciphers.com/408/key.html
"that" is present in full.

I like killing people because it is so much fun. It is more fun than killing wild game in the forrest because man is the most dangerous animal of all. To kill something gives me the most thrilling experence. It is even better than getting your rocks off with a girl. The best part of it is that when I die I will be reborn in paradice and all th(os)e I have killed will become my slaves. I will not give you my name because you will try to slow down or stop my collecting of slaves for my afterlife. ebeorietemethhpiti

Rubislaw 32 link

10/3/2018 04:55:44 pm

.....ah yes....this part of what I am getting at :

It is only an ''assumption'' that the ''408'' solution was missing ''PEOPLE''.

What the ''concerned citizen'' actually inferred,in the cipher keys that he supplied,was :

''....I will be reborn in paradise and all THAT I have killed will become my slaves....''.

So,there never was the word ''People'' anyway.It's just that ''concerned citizen'' only wrote ''tha'',instead of ''that''.

''Zodiac'' must have been,both mortified,and livid,when he saw the Harden's solution,in bold newspaper print [?].

It serves him right.

Rubislaw 32 link

10/3/2018 05:15:55 pm

Indeed,we were at cross-timing,on the posts.

Perhaps we have homed in on the whole crux [?].

The Hardens : ''THE''

''concerned citizen'' : ''THA''

Is ''THE'' meant to be ''Those'' ?

Is ''THA'' meant to be ''That'' ?

The first ''looses'' two character spaces,at the end.

The second ''looses'' one character space,at the end.

I suspect that,whatever the reality,that Zodiac intended precisely one complete line,at the end,for the purpose of a ''signing off'' name or message.

Or,that his main composition,ended precisely at character space No.391.

The whole concept of ''anagrams'' as an extra puzzle,may have been ''born'',at that very moment [?].

Rubislaw 32 link

10/3/2018 05:30:37 pm

Incidentally Richard.....here's a strange possible ''coincidence'' :

In hopefully,having solved ''S1'',Scorpion refers to ''collection of people''.

He doesn't say ''collection of slaves'',for example.

It might be conceivable,that Zodiac believes that a ''phantom'' perceived ''people'' cost him his dignity,when the Harden's ''408'' solution,was published [?].

Rubislaw 32 link

10/4/2018 02:38:43 am

Indeed Richard,I had noted your reference to ''FORREST'',last night.

I had categorised that,as with ''EXPERENCE'',for ''concerned citizen''.

Zodiac had spelled words like ''Figgure'' for ''Figure'',in his letters.

Naturally,whatever the difference on spelling interpretation,between the Hardens and ''concerned citizen''.....the ''numerical'' aspect,ended up,exactly the same,at the end.....and 18 character spaces were presented,for the purpose of an anagram.

If,for example,Zodiac had,at the outset of laying out his ''final'' 408 presentation,he might have intended an anagram of :

''I'M THE ZODIAC KILLER'' [...17 character spaces...]

Which,he then had to change,to :

''I AM THE ZODIAC KILLER'' [.....18 character spaces..]

My intention,in examining the keys of the ''concerned citizen'' was always,primarily,to explore the two different approaches.

Regardless,I will post Scorpion's ''S1'' solution,when complete.Then,I believe,this ''collection of people'' phrase will become more obvious,for others to draw comparisons,with the ''408'' solution.

You should see what Scorpion [...Zodiac [?]...] has done to the phrase :

''Frothy Coffee Latte''

To post,hopefully soon.

Richard

10/4/2018 03:25:35 am

The only reason I concentrated on the Harden solution is because the 'concerned citizen' material is unproven as Zodiac correspondence. It is an interesting addition to the days following the publication of the 408, but until such time it has been confirmed as authentic Zodiac correspondence (which likely will be never) then I only wanted to focus on the 408 and Harden text. I, of course, understand the differing opinions on its origins or validity, but I was deliberately steering away from it, because then we have two competing ideas. If we take "those" as what Zodiac intended to put, we have to consider only 16 characters would have been undeciphered. His misspellings can be largely ignored because he regularly did this throughout his letters, so it isn't particularly unusual to find them in the transcribed 408. But "the" is not strictly a misspelling, it's an omission, intended to be "those". If he had written out his message and read it back to himself before applying the code, then one would assume he would have realized the message didn't read properly, "The best part of it is that when I die I will be reborn in paradice and all THE I have killed will become my slaves." does not sound linguistically correct. So, if his original message contained 392 characters, then the idea of splitting his cipher into three equal parts, each comprising of 10 rows of 13 characters, to create 390 in total doesn't work. If his message contained 392 characters, but he slipped up when placing them in the grid (as "those" was on the cusp of cipher 2 and 3) at the end of the row, then if done correctly he would only have had 16 remaining characters not 18. If this was a mistake and not intentional, it is difficult to argue a case for he had a predetermined message prepared for the final part of the cipher. If "the" was deliberate, then the case for deliberately leaving 18 characters stands. One would assume, given his grand entrance and the neatness he had put into the creation of the 408 (carefully arranged and even), unlike the Fairfield letters, that he would have proof-read the message itself and realized it didn't flow linguistically. If it was by mistake he put "the" instead of "those", then an argument for a pre-designed message at the foot of the cipher is nullified. If his intention was to write three even ciphers of 136 characters (17 X 24 in total), leaving "I am the Zodiac Killer," did he realize he only had 16 characters remaining and deliberately changed "those" to "the". The fact it bridged cipher 2 and 3 suggests it may have been a mistake. If so, then my article of a pre-designed message doesn't work. The real question is, was the message he originally created, the one he ultimately penned in the cipher.

Rubislaw 32 link

10/4/2018 06:22:39 am

Although much ''content details'' of the ''408'',for debate,I think you have hit the nail on the head,with Zodiac's ''overriding'' intention to mail the ''408'' cipher....in three equal parts.

Effectively,the three major local newspapers,received 136 cipher symbols,each.For the purposes of having to come together,to ''put'' the cipher back together again....for maximisation of story exposure.

So....yes...the cipher really did have to be a ''408'',than a possible ''391''.

Hence,it just remains a question mark,as to whether Zodiac intended an anagram,just for the final line....or,always intending it to be 18 characters in length.....or,being forced to settle for a 18 character anagram,on the basis of the odd unforced error.

What is little in doubt,then....is that he had actually earmarked an anagram,from the start.

So,''two puzzles'' was Zodiac's opening gambit.

Rubislaw 32 link

10/4/2018 09:07:53 am

I think it's worth mentioning,Richard,and really in no way,to labour a point....but more for the record,to consider at a later date,perhaps [?].

If we accepted an equal chance of Zodiac,intending :

Either :

''......and all THOSE I have killed will become my slaves....''

Or :

''......and all THAT I have killed will become my slaves....''

On balance,the first might ''edge'' it.

And,yet we know that there is a greater chance that ''concerned citizen was Zodiac,than the ''near preposterous'' possibility that the Hardens impersonated Zodiac.

So,although we might be persuaded by ''THOSE'',it is actually ''THAT'' which has the greater chance of being correct [?].

but : ''...and all that I have killed will become my slaves.'' seems for ''general'' destruction,than ''people killing'' [?].

Perhaps,it is conceivable that we might find,at a later date that Zodiac is suspected of having killed the odd cat or dog,belonging to someone that he was suspected of having intimidated [?].

Like Darlene Ferrin's sister,Pam,for example.

Marcelo

10/4/2018 11:17:46 am

Richard,Interesting article. Miss you my good friend

Rubislaw 32 link

10/4/2018 05:32:27 pm

S1 - Richard.

I'm settling for ''Bagel Bob's'',a traditional place and popular eatery on York Avenue.

It works,in ''all ways''.

Scorpion is Zodiac,as far as I can see.

New Jersey ? Zodiac misleading,once again.

More like,''Newark Airport'' close by,and for a short visit...a number of times,with New York City,the main attraction,naturally.

Hopefully,''S5'' will bring more ''clews''.

Nobody

10/4/2018 08:57:22 pm

The best way to look at the remaining characters is they are just random errors, possibly put there on purpose by the author to make the cipher just that little bit more difficult to solve.

To make any more of them in the absence of any proof would be to entertain mere guesswork. But people with over-active imaginations will always strive to make stuff fit.

Hayden

1/17/2019 12:07:42 am

Could the 18 letters be co-ordinates(numbers) not letters as he stated he wont share his name but once the cipher was decoded you will have him

Jennifer

3/21/2019 02:13:33 am

The reason that the remaining 18 letters remain unsolved is because the Harden's were incorrect. They did not correctly decipher the message.
When, in the history of decoding cryptograms and ciphers have you ever known of a partial solution? Either all of the characters fit, or they do not. The remaining 18 are left "unsolved" because the rest of the cipher was not correctly solved. Harden just dreamt up words and made them fit. "I like killing people because ..." Had the correct message been deciphered, there would be no characters or letters left out.
The reason that other Zodiac ciphers have not been solved is because everyone, including the FBI, are basing their attempts on the Harden's blunder. Again, had the Harden's been correct, then all of the ciphers would have been solved. That is how a cipher and key works.
I said this years ago (just not on this forum/website) that the ciphers are a message in a message. They are multifaceted. The messages are more like a hieroglyph, and are polyalphabetic substitutions.No one alphabet can be used to decipher it. The Zodiac takes a word, a symbol, and a thought, and makes sentences.
The poor spelling in some of the letters is odd too, and in some cases I believe intentional. No one has ever questioned the fact that the Zodiac was genius enough to create a cipher that no one could crack in 50 years, but he couldn't spell? I don't believe it.
In any case, until the correct key is determined, there will never be a solution. The key isn't difficult to figure out, really, once you realize what he (Zodiac) was doing. Those last 18 "unsolved" should have been a clue that Harden was wrong. Yet, people take it as fact and use his misinterpretation for everything else. Just my thoughts,

Danny Hill

4/20/2019 07:46:10 pm

I agree with you. The Hardons didn't crack anything. But, I believe the code should be approached line by line, different code for each line. I tried this method and I seem to have decoded a name, city, and branch of service served. I will not disclose any info until I am finished and sure I am wright. Hint: the symbols do not equal a single letter.

The Legend Continues!

4/20/2019 11:01:08 pm

Interesting approach to an old problem. Another approach would be, instead of seeing each symbol as just one symbol, look at them as if each could be 2 or more symbols joined together. The problem of course will be the more variables we consider, the more variable our solution might end up being.

Melly Belly

4/20/2019 11:50:52 pm

"The Hardons didn't crack anything." *Blink!*

"I will not disclose any info until I am finished and sure I am wright." (misspelling!) :-O

It is plain to see that when it comes to this Zodiac case, revisionism is not going away any day soon, nor are earth-shattering yet unsubstantiated claims! They just keep coming, and have sadly become one of the few certainties in this case.

The Legend Continues!

3/21/2019 05:22:13 am

There we have it folks, Zodiac was a GENIUS and the Hardens were completely and utterly wrong, despite ALL the evidence to the contrary?

Multifaceted solutions with variable and obscure interpretations of meaning based on such things as hieroglyphic and polyalphabetic substitutions all tend to suggest subjectivity and variability have not been seriously considered, and therefore any solution based on such poorly considered reasoning will not be scientifically provable. This means any solution obtained by such means will probably be wrong and mainly the result of one person's fertile imagination.

The 408 was a homophonic cipher, period. This is provable by scientific method, and can be replicated over and over. It is not uncommon nor unusual for a cipher to have some miscellaneous characters for purposes of subterfuge. But of course once someone makes the leap that Zodiac was some kind of genius, it can become a complete waste of time and internet space trying to change that person's mind.

Jennifer

3/21/2019 06:43:33 pm

Well right. I agree with you in part of the harmonics of it. However, if the Hardens were correct, then 1) why are there 18 characters unsolved in the 408, and why is the 340 unsolved? Shouldn't their key have been applicable to all? That is how ciphers work. It is unlikely that the Zodiac would change his key from one letter to the next, then again, I don't personally believe that he is responsible for all of the ciphers. At least one, as well as several of the letters sent are fakes, either created by a copycat, or by the police in an attempt to flush the real Zodiac out of hiding. Also, I did not say specifically a hieroglyph, but rather, much like one in concept, insofar as to state that one symbol represents a word or phrase, not a letter. In this very fashion, he has created a map. He combines Greek and Latin, (for two of the languages he used) as well as astrological signs and symbols. If you didn’t know anything about astronomy, then Greek letters are used to represent stars. There is always an Alpha, Beta, Gamma and Delta star or cluster, fyi.
He is not telling you that he likes to kill people and writing out messages that say, “I like to kill people …” He is providing locations, and directions. This is evidentiary in his cipher on the bomb. He is providing directions and a location. He is mapping out GPS and celestial coordinates. Latitude and longitude and elevation, as well as right ascension and declination.
The Hardens were wrong. Plain and simple. Had they been correct, then not only would the remaining 18 characters in the 408 have been deciphered at that time or shortly thereafter, but all subsequent legitimate ciphers would have been solved also. The fact that it has been about 50 years of nothing but wild guesses, proves it.

The Legend Continues!

3/22/2019 04:33:06 pm

You seem content to make a lot of presumptions about these ciphers, and ciphers in general. All I can say is "Good luck with that. You are going to need it!"

Steve

7/10/2019 11:55:45 am

Has anyone solved the last 18 letters in the 408 cipher? It looks like something to me but maybe I just read it somewhere.

Richard

7/10/2019 12:08:54 pm

No, the length combined with the repeating characters make it practically unsolvable without a key. There are 100's of proposed solves, all different, which effectively shows you how easy it is to just create what you want. Short codes such as these 18 characters, the 13 Symbol cipher of April 20th 1970 and the June 26th 1970 code of 32 characters (with only 3 repeating symbols) you can basically write in whatever you please. None could be proven, unless you could show a valid key hidden somewhere in his other communications. But then you have to prove this is the correct key he intended. The 340 is solvable, but the rest is simply guesswork as we stand.

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THE 18 UNSOLVED CHARACTERS

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